The South African Police Service (SAPS) is engaged in a determined pursuit to apprehend the perpetrator(s) responsible for the fatal shooting of one of its own in Vrygrond, Muizenberg. This latest incident marks another concerning attack on law enforcement officials, following a recent string of incidents targeting police officers in the Western Cape.
In the most recent incident, a police sergeant was fatally shot in front of his home in Vrygrond as he was leaving for work at the Wynberg station. The officer was discovered lying on the ground in his uniform next to his car, having sustained fatal gunshot wounds.
Police spokesperson Colonel Andrè Traut confirmed that the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), commonly known as The Hawks, has been assigned to lead the investigation.
Colonel Traut provided details of the incident: “At approximately 5am, the body of the 48-year-old police sergeant was discovered outside his home in Thys Witbooi Street, Vrygrond. He had sustained fatal gunshot wounds. At the time of the incident, he was in uniform and was en route to report for duty at Wynberg SAPS. His family members, who were inside the residence, were unharmed.”
The Provincial Commissioner of the Western Cape, Lieutenant-General Thembisile Patekile, has issued a directive that all available resources be dedicated to the urgent apprehension of those responsible for the murder.
Lieutenant-General Patekile emphasised the gravity of the situation: “An attack on any member of the South African Police Service will be met with the full force of the law. We will not rest until justice is served.”
Police are appealing to the public for assistance in the investigation. Anyone with information that could assist in this case is urged to contact Crime Stop anonymously at 08600 10111.
The Muizenberg area has been grappling with a spate of violence, with police also reporting the murder of two taxi drivers on the same morning as the officer's killing. In the nearby Xakabantu informal settlement, a driver was shot and killed while sitting inside his taxi. In a separate incident, a man in his mid-20s was shot in the Overcome Heights informal settlement in Sewende Laan.
Muizenberg police have opened cases of murder for investigation in connection with the taxi driver killings and are appealing to anyone who may have information regarding these incidents to please contact Crime Stop on 08600 10111.
Vrygrond ward councillor Mandy Marr has called on the provincial government to take immediate action to address the escalating situation in the area.
Marr stated: “We have a massive problem in Vrygrond, and we need the police to bring resources to us. We are in desperate need. No one is talking about the extortion that is occurring in Vrygrond.”
She also criticised what she described as selective urgency in official responses to the violence, saying: “It’s devastating that a police officer, one of my residents, is killed, but every life matters. A scholar transport driver was killed, and he is not the first. Now that a police officer has been shot, the province says it will take any means necessary to get to the bottom of this. All people deserve justice.”
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